nak: "fnatic are the team to beat"

HLTV.org sat down with FireGamers captain Renato "nak" Nakano to discuss his team's chances at the WCG.

FireGamers qualified for this year's World Cyber Games edition following a 2-1 success over Made in Brazil after coming from the Lower Bracket.

The Brazilian giants have been drawn in Group B, where they will have to work hard to progress to the knock-out stage after being paired with fnatic, wNv.cn, DINC and Executioners.

In the interview you will find below, FG captain Renato "nak" Nakano comments on his side's chances at the WCG, the victory over Made in Brazil and also Pedro "aSpx" Slatovisk's six-year ban.

FireGamers were drawn together with fnatic, DINC, wNv and Executioners for the WCG. What is your opinion about the group?

In my opinion we are in the toughest group of the WCG. It will be very hard, specially because we will take on fnatic and wNv on their best maps. If we wanted to go far in the tournament we would face big teams. The difficulties just started earlier than expected.

How is your team practicing for this tournament?

As everyone knows, training in Brazil is precarious, there are no teams to practice with on LAN and the internet connection is bad. We are training more individually than against other teams.

What are your team's goals for the event?

We are hoping for a top 3 placing.

Having been used to practicing in Sweden for international events during  your time at mibr, do you think  that training only in Brazil will affect your team's performances?

It surely affects our trainings, but what we have this time is something you cannot get in any training in Sweden, which is the trust every player has on each other both on and off the game. And I think that will be a big plus for us.

Which teams do your fear the most and why?

There are many teams I respect and know that will be very hard to beat. Fnatic are coming off a tremendous phase, winning almost everything they participate in, I am sure they will be the team to beat in this WCG.

Do you think that the WCG should use a different system for its group draws? Last year, mibr were also in a very complicated group.

With this draw system we keep having one or two unbalanced groups. But as I said before, sooner or later all the big teams will have to face each other.

At the WCG qualifier, you lost the first map to mibr 16-6 and won the two maps of the grand final. What was the recipe for this change in the last match?

I think that the fact the team is united and, like I said, we all trust each other, no-one wants to fool anyone, we know this is the team and that it will continue being the same team whether we win or lose. That really helps us keep our motivation high even after a defeat.

What did you feel when you defeated mibr in the final?

I felt that this time we had not let the victory get away like at KODE5 during the last time we met, I was very confident for the tournament and it felt like mission accomplished.

Did you have any special word with bit?

I told him, "Well done."

After this tournament, what will your team do? Do you have any other events planned?

I do not think so, unless we can find a sponsor willing to help us attend an international tournament. But in Brazil the next tournament will only take place next year.

How did you follow all the controversy surrounding aSpx cheating at WCG Brazil?

I watched the videos on YouTube and I thought it was ridiculous. The tournament organisation contacted me and asked me for my opinion on the videos, I think it was clear he was cheating.

Do you consider his six-year ban fair?

Yes, if there wasn't a fair punishment, other players could do the same. He will be an example so that such things never happen again.